Chapter 548: Assembly Hits a Snag

As the morning sun just brushed over the assembly workshop's skylight, Lin Zhengcheng stepped in through the dew.

On the floor, the bomber's airframe was already taking shape, its silvery‑gray skin glinting dull in the morning light, while several technicians crowded around the engine‑bay joint, their brows tightly knit.

"What's wrong?" Lin Zhengcheng set down his tool bag and walked over, his gaze fixed on the seam between the airframe and the engine.

The technician in charge of the docking, Xiao Zhang, handed over a feeler gauge, his voice tinged with urgency:

"Lin Gong, the engine‑bay alignment reference is off; the feeler gauge can insert two millimetres, but the design calls for a gap no larger than 0.5 mm. If we force the docking, the subsequent test flight could suffer airflow turbulence."

Lin Zhengcheng took the gauge and probed along the joint inch by inch; indeed, many spots let it slide in easily.

He crouched, his fingers brushing the alignment holes on the joint, then spread out the assembly drawings on the floor:

"The positioning pins are precise; the airframe suffered slight deformation during welding."

"Deformation?" Xiao Zhang paused, "We monitored the temperature throughout welding—how could it deform?"

"The welding stress in the high‑temperature alloy hasn't fully released," Lin Zhengcheng said, pointing to the weld on the drawing. "This is a stress‑concentration point; after welding we skipped a secondary ageing treatment, so uneven cooling caused shrinkage that shifted the alignment reference."

He stood and looked toward the ageing furnace in the workshop corner. "Now we have to redo the heat‑treatment, release the frame's stress, and recalibrate the alignment."

But the problem arose: the workshop's furnace couldn't accommodate the entire airframe.

"We have to contact the Heavy Machinery Research Institute and use their large furnace," Lin Zhengcheng pulled out his intercom, about to call dispatch, when Lin Qinhua and Chen Mo hurried in, both sweating.

"Zheng Cheng, the composite tail‑plane passed the strength test, but we found its mounting holes don't quite match the airframe's reserved holes," Chen Mo handed over the test report, the deviation data glaring red.

Just when the roof leaks, a night of rain arrives.

Lin Zhengcheng pinched his brow, took the report and skimmed it quickly, saying:

"It's the same root cause as the engine‑bay issue—frame deformation causing a chain reaction. First we solve the stress problem; the hole misalignment can later be corrected by fine‑tuning the mounting holes."

At that point, he turned to Xiao Zhang: "Contact the institute now and arrange a time slot for the large furnace—ideally we can use it today. Qin Hua, Chen Mo and I will calibrate the frame's deformation and set the heat‑treatment parameters."

The workshop instantly buzzed with activity.

Lin Zhengcheng led the two of them, using a laser rangefinder to measure the frame's deformation point by point, recording every value meticulously.

Qin Hua then, based on the measurements, simulated the post‑treatment deformation recovery on a computer, repeatedly tweaking temperature and hold‑time parameters.

Chen Mo ran to the warehouse, inventoried the tools needed for calibration, and coordinated a crane to prepare moving the airframe to the institute.

Lunch was taken in the workshop; the few of them held their boxed meals, crouched beside the frame, eating while discussing.

Qin Jingru, having heard about the assembly snag from somewhere, lugged a thermos of hot soup over and handed a bowl to each of them:

"No matter how urgent, you must eat properly; a ruined stomach can't work."

"Mom, why are you here?" Lin Zhengcheng took the hot soup, his nose tingling with emotion.

"I came to see you bunch of over‑eager lads," Qin Jingru wiped the grease from his face, "Your father asked me to tell you not to be too short‑sighted; make each step solid, that's more important than rushing time."

Lin Zhengcheng nodded, took a sip of the hot soup, the warmth sliding down his throat into his stomach, calming his anxiety a bit.

At two p. m., word came from the Heavy Machinery Research Institute: the large furnace had a slot available.

The crane slowly entered the workshop, carefully lifting the airframe onto a flatbed.

Lin Zhengcheng and Xiao Zhang rode with the vehicle to the institute, while Lin Qinhua and Chen Mo stayed behind, pre‑preparing the tooling needed for subsequent calibration.

When the furnace started, it emitted a low‑pitched hum.

Lin Zhengcheng stood by the console, his eyes glued to the temperature readout; every ten‑degree rise prompted a pressure data entry.

Xiao Zhang teased from beside him, "Lin Gong, you watch it more closely than your own child."

"This airframe is far more valuable than any child," Lin Zhengcheng smiled, his tone solemn, "It's our nation's first long‑range bomber prototype; no datum can be wrong."

The heat‑treatment lasted a full eight hours, ending only late at night.

When the furnace door opened slowly and the cooled airframe was hoisted out, Lin Zhengcheng immediately re‑measured it with the laser rangefinder.

"The deformation recovered!" Xiao Zhang shouted, eyes on the display, "The alignment deviation is under 0.3 mm, within spec!"

Lin Zhengcheng exhaled a long breath, brushed the fatigue from his face, and his eyes shone brightly:

"We'll haul it back to the assembly workshop overnight and start re‑docking first thing tomorrow morning."

Meanwhile, in the makeshift office at the Xibei test‑flight field, Lin Zhengpeng was still meeting with the meteorology team.

Outside, wind hurled sand, striking the window with a crackling sound.

"The next three days will bring severe sand‑storm conditions, visibility under one kilometre, making pre‑flight site surveys impossible," the meteorology chief said, pointing at a satellite cloud map, his tone grave. "If we wait for the dust to clear, it'll delay at least five days and affect the overall schedule."

Lin Zhengpeng frowned, his finger tracing the surrounding areas of the test‑flight field on the map:

"Are there any alternate zones? Or can we mitigate the sand‑storm impact through artificial intervention?"

"The alternate sites are too far; moving equipment would take at least two days, not cost‑effective. Artificial intervention would require massive rain‑making rockets, but airspace control here is strict; the approval process takes at least three days."

Lin Zhengpeng picked up the phone and dialed the assembly workshop.

It was deep night, yet the workshop lights were still on; Lin Zhengcheng had just overseen the airframe being lowered from the crane.

"Brother, the frame issue is solved; we can dock the engine tomorrow," Lin Zhengcheng's voice was weary yet clear.

"Alright," Lin Zhengpeng paused, then briefed the sand‑storm situation, "We may be delayed a few days here; you should accelerate the subsequent steps to keep the overall schedule from lagging."

"Got it," Lin Zhengcheng replied, "Stay safe over there; don't go out during the sandstorm."

After hanging up, Lin Zhengcheng turned to Chen Mo, who was organizing tools, and said:

"The Xibei side has sand, delaying the test‑flight site survey by a few days; we need to push the assembly progress forward to make up the lost time."

Chen Mo nodded, "I'll arrange it right away, rotating shifts so we work nonstop, 24 hours."

In the deep‑night assembly workshop, the machines' roar rose again.

Lin Zhengcheng stood beside the airframe, watching the technicians' bustling silhouettes, fully aware that this was just a small episode on the assembly road.

Ahead, countless challenges await them, but as long as everyone pulls together like a single rope, no obstacle is insurmountable.

In the Xibei night, Lin Zhengpeng stood at the office window, gazing at the distant test‑flight field shrouded in sand.

The wind still howled, yet he fished a slip of paper from his pocket, bearing words Lin Shengli had written before departure:

"When trouble arises, stay calm and respond composedly."

He clenched the slip of paper, turned and went back to his desk, then unfolded the test flight plan again.

Since the weather won't wait, we should find a breakthrough in the plan, solidly do all the work that can be prepared in advance, and once the sandstorm clears, we can immediately launch the survey.

When the horizon showed a fish-belly white, the docking work in the final assembly workshop had already begun.

In the seam where the engine nacelle met the fuselage frame, a feeler gauge could no longer be inserted; the cheers of a successful precise docking shattered the morning's tranquility.

Lin Zhengcheng leaned against the wall corner, watching the scene before him, a faint smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

He knew that far away in the Xibei, Lin Zhengpeng was also struggling for the same goal.

And in the courtyard at home, Qin Jingru should have already started preparing breakfast; Lin Shengli would sit in the courtyard, waiting for their news.

This coordination spanning a thousand miles, this concern hidden in their busyness, is exactly the strength that sustains them step by step forward.